NY Philharmonic Announces 'Young People's Concerts'

The 94th season of the New York Philharmonic Young People's Concerts (YPCs) will continue on Saturday, December 3, 2016, at 2:00 p.m. with "Classical," the second program in this season's series, The Ages of Music - each program exploring the sound, composers, and culture of the Baroque, Classical, Romantic, and Modern eras, respectively. The all-Mozart program will feature the Overture to The Marriage of Figaro and selections from the Symphony No. 31, Paris; Flute Concerto No. 2, with Philharmonic flutist Yoobin Son in her Philharmonic solo debut; and Symphony No. 39. Assistant Conductor Joshua Gersen will conduct the program; Vice President, Education, Theodore Wiprud will host the event, which will also feature classical dancer Thomas Baird and hip-hop dancer Quilan Arnold. The scriptwriters and directors are Nell Benjamin and Laurence O'Keefe, whose collaborations include the Tony-nominated and Olivier Award-winning Legally Blonde, The Musical.

Attendees are invited to come early to take part in YPC Overtures, at which children meet Philharmonic musicians and try out orchestral instruments on the Grand Promenade and upper tiers of David Geffen Hall, starting at 12:45 p.m. Pre-concert activities inside the hall include live performances by ensembles of Philharmonic musicians of works by Very Young Composers inspired by the YPC's thematic content.

Artists
Joshua Gersen, music director of the New York Youth Symphony since September 2012, began his tenure as New York Philharmonic Assistant Conductor in September 2015. A graduate of the Curtis Institute of Music, he studied conducting with Otto-Werner Mueller and was the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation Conducting Fellow of the New World Symphony, where he served as assistant conductor to artistic director Michael Tilson Thomas, and led subscription, education, and family concerts. Mr. Gersen made his conducting debut with the San Francisco Symphony in the fall of 2013; he has since led that orchestra numerous times, including filling in for Tilson Thomas on part of a subscription series. Joshua Gersen was the principal conductor of the Ojai Music Festival in 2013; has conducted the Pittsburgh, Indianapolis, and Jacksonville symphony orchestras; and has served as a cover conductor for the Los Angeles Philharmonic and many other orchestras throughout the United States. Winner of a Solti Foundation U.S. Career Assistance Award, he is also a recipient of the 2010 Robert Harth Prize and 2011 Aspen Conducting Prize from the Aspen Summer Festival, where he served as assistant conductor in the summer of 2012. Mr. Gersen is also an avid composer, and his works have been performed by the New Mexico and Greater Bridgeport Symphony Orchestras as well as the Greater Bridgeport Youth Orchestra and at New England Conservatory's Jordan Hall. Mr. Gersen received his bachelor of music degree in composition from the New England Conservatory, studying with Michael Gandolfi. His work as a composer has led to an interest in conducting contemporary music; he has led World Premieres with the New World Symphony and New York Youth Symphony, and has collaborated with many composers including John Adams, Christopher Rouse, Steven Mackey, Mason Bates, and Michael Gandolfi. Joshua Gersen made his New York Philharmonic debut leading a Young People's Concert in December 2015; most recently, he led the Orchestra in the October 2016 Young People's Concert.

Flutist Yoobin Son was the first Korean to join the New York Philharmonic's wind section when she became a member of the Orchestra in November 2012. She continues to serve as principal flute of the Mostly Mozart Festival Orchestra, a position she has held since 2010. Previously, she served as principal flute of the New Haven Symphony Orchestra during the 2008-09 season. Ms. Son has performed as a soloist with ensembles including the New Haven, New Jersey, Florida, William Paterson University, and Korean symphony orchestras, and the Prime and Seoul Philharmonic orchestras. She has appeared in recitals throughout the United States, among them the Dame Myra Hess Memorial Concerts in Chicago, as well as on the Young Artist Series of the Kumho Asiana Cultural Foundation in Seoul, South Korea. A dedicated chamber musician, Ms. Son has participated at festivals including the Marlboro Music Festival and Music from Angel Fire. She is an alumna of Carnegie Hall's The Academy, where she was an active performer in the acclaimed Ensemble ACJW. As part of The Academy's fellowship program, Ms. Son was a teaching artist at P.S. 207K in Brooklyn. She has received honors including Grand Prize at the Florida Orchestra Young Artist Competition, First Prize at the National Flute Association Soloist Competition, Second Prize at the Koussevitzky International Winds Competition, and the Conductor's Award at the New Jersey Symphony Orchestra Young Artist Auditions. Yoobin Son received her bachelor of music degree from the Curtis Institute of Music, master's degree from Yale University, and professional studies and artist diploma from the Manhattan School of Music. Her principal teachers have included New York Philharmonic Principal Flute Robert Langevin, Ransom Wilson, Jeffrey Khaner, and Bradley Garner. These performances mark Yoobin Son's New York Philharmonic solo debut.

Theodore Wiprud - New York Philharmonic Vice President, Education, The Sue B. Mercy Chair - has directed the Orchestra's Education Department since 2004. The Philharmonic's education programs include the famed Young People's Concerts (which Mr. Wiprud hosts), Philharmonic Schools (an immersive classroom program that reaches thousands of New York City students), Very Young Composers (which enables students to express themselves through original works, often performed by Philharmonic musicians), adult education programs, and many special projects. Mr. Wiprud has also created innovative programs as director of education and community engagement at the Brooklyn Philharmonic and the American Composers Orchestra; served as associate director of The Commission Project; and assisted the Orchestra of St. Luke's on its education programs. He has worked as a teaching artist and resident composer in a number of New York City schools. From 1990 to 1997 he directed national grant-making programs at Meet the Composer. Prior to that position, he taught at and directed the music department for Walnut Hill School, a pre-professional arts boarding school near Boston. Mr. Wiprud is also an active composer, whose Violin Concerto (Katrina) was released on Champs Hill Records. His music for orchestra, chamber ensembles, and voice is published by Allemar Music. Theodore Wiprud holds degrees from Harvard and Boston Universities and studied at Cambridge University as a visiting scholar.

Thomas Baird is a historical dance specialist and co-director of Apollo's Banquet, a New York City-based Baroque dance and music ensemble. He was the period movement coach for the Broadway production of O'Neill's A Touch of the Poet, and the Lincoln Center Theater production of Sheridan's The Rivals. His period choreography for The Metropolitan Opera's 2005 production of Alfano's Cyrano de Bergerac will be revived in the 2016-17 season performances. Since 2006 he has choreographed and performed period dances for the New York Philharmonic Young People's Concerts. For almost 20 years he has performed, taught, and choreographed for Baroque dance concerts in Tokyo, Sapporo, and Kanazawa. He has appeared three times at the Tsuru Early Music Festival. Mr. Baird is the director of Dancing History, through which he teaches the history of dance via actual dances of the distant past at dance schools throughout the United States as well as to musicians at the Westminster Choir College Solo Piano Workshop and the Curtis Institute. For 10 years he directed the East Coast Baroque Dance Workshop at Rutgers University. Thomas Baird is a regular guest lecturer on Baroque dance at The Juilliard School, Mannes School of Music, and Manhattan School of Music. He is a longtime faculty member of the Opera Division at SUNY Purchase, teaching movement style for singers and choreographing opera productions. Mr. Baird is a certified teacher of the Alexander Technique, teaching privately, and in the Music and Dance Divisions at Purchase College and in the Dance Division at Juilliard. Thomas Baird made his New York Philharmonic debut appearing in the October 2016 Young People's Concert.

Quilan Arnold is a professional dancer, teacher, and choreographer based in Baltimore, Maryland and New York City. A graduate of Penn State University with a bachelor's degree in integrative arts and a minor in dance, he worked with faculty members Kikora Franklin, Elisha Clark Halpin, and Steve Broadnax. Mr. Arnold earned a graduate degree in dance from Ohio State University, where he worked with choreographers such as Rennie Harris, Bebe Miller, Tine Salling, Susan Hadley, and Teena Marie Custer. As a graduate assistant specializing in hip-hop dance, he taught popular elective courses that inspired him to form the Columbus, Ohio-based on C.U.E, which uses dance to educate students on the impact of hip-hop culture, beyond the music. Quilan Arnold's recent credits include a full-time faculty appointment at Towson University, joining the faculties at Gibney Dance Center and Mark Morris Dance Center, as well as dancing and choreographing internationally (most recently in Brazil). Quilan Arnold made his New York Philharmonic debut appearing in the October 2016 Young People's Concert.

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